Today was a Xtraining day, so did 50 minutes of LB. Standing exercises first with some plyo thrown in, then floor exercises with ankle weights. I then biked to work and my legs weren't quite up to the job. Especially not when it came to biking up bridges with a head wind.

Dutchie I go running in the early morning, before my brain figures out what I'm up to.

Russ - Nice 10K. I looked at the profile for that course....impressive. You kept getting faster as the hills got bigger!

dutchie - Hills aren't supposed to be hard on a bike. It's the same effort everywhere if you use the right gear .

Just heard that there was another death at the rnr VB half I was in this weekend. Last year it was a 23 year old guy, this year a 27 year old. I know a half marathon is no walk in the park but is just scary how these young, relatively fit young men can be dropping dead.

Another hill run today--this time a nasty, gnarly, rocky, rooty trail group run on Kennesaw Mountain with GUTS (Georgia Ultrarunning and Trailrunning Society) followed by pizza and beer. That's my first time running the group run with GUTS, I may try to do some more although it's kind of far away.

"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

"To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

"The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

OK, somebody kick my butt. I have such a hard time getting up in the morning. Are these the post-staycation blues, or am I loosing my mojo? How can I loose my mojo after such a great run like last Sunday? Maybe it's the pitch black darkness that's getting to me? I know September is always a hard month to keep running cause it's when I really have to run in the dark for the first time untill Spring. But I enjoyed it last Thu and Fri?.

Dutchie I go running in the early morning, before my brain figures out what I'm up to.

18.6 on the trails today, and it went much better than the last couple of long trail runs, I was able to finish without being totally exhausted and overheated. It included a couple of river crossings which felt GREAT! I dunked my head in the cool water, along with my hat and bandana, and got a second wind. It still wasn't easy by any means but, well, better anyway. Taper time.

Also got my work schedule changed so I can run the Inaugural Crazy Horse Marathon in South Dakota, which I really wanted to do.

MTA: I was listening for banjo music the whole time!

"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

"To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

"The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

Dutchie:﻿ alright, you had your moan, now get up and get out there. If you think its early for you, just remember how dark it is over on this side of the Atlantic. (and I hope you know I'm kidding and just want to see you out on the road).

Russ: great job on the 10K. And I didn't even know Marietta had hills (but the only part I've ever seen is I-75 so what would I know)

Jeff: congrats on Virginia Beach. Of all the places to run on Labor Day, that's always seemed one of the best.

Everyone else: great work all. I've read every post and every race report. Sorry for not chiming in with my support. It has been great tracking each of you all summer.

Still toodling along here, 8 on monday, weight training on tuesday, 4 on wednesday and thursday. I did 4 x 3 minutes at (my) 5K pace on the treadmill and felt pretty good afterwards. i'm taking a rest day today and then 15 miles - my longest run even on Saturday morning!

It is dark in the morning and cool... I like it and luckily there are street lights so I dont need a head lamp.

10.8 in Central Park today. First time in a LONG time I've run in cool weather (excepting Humpy's, but that's a race) and it really showed, I had a good run, lots of energy, good pace. I'm ready for Fall! It's been a good, hard week of running.

"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

"To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

"The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

Dutchie: Hit the road, girl! Your mojo will come back - don't worry about that. I agree the darkness changes things. Do you have - or can you get - a really bright headlight to help brighten your personal running space as you go along? I found a brigher light made a difference in that for me - it's a small thing, but it may help.

Russ: What is the distance of the Sierra Nevada Endurance Run you have listed? A belated congratulations on doing sooo well in the Marietta 10K last weekend. Your trail running sounds hard, but rewarding.

Ayola: Good luck with your 15-miler tomorrow. I'll be thinking of you when I'm out running.

I'm going to repeat last Sat. and run 13, but hopefully without the hip pain. Had a somewhat frustrating PT eval today because she got as far as figuring out what she thinks the source of the problem is, but ran out of time to give me any exercises for it. The appt didn't yield anything for me since I already know the source of the problem - dates back to getting bucked off a horse in 2004 and jamming the left side of my low back into the ground. My left pelvis hasn't moved freely ever since and periodically the left SI joint and low back have flare-ups. Plus now I have the ischial bursitis, and she thinks some hamstring tendonitis - that's not news either. In the meantime, hopefully to my advantage, she'll be posting my "case report" as part of a residency she's doing and other PTs can provide input. Two heads are sometimes better than one; so we'll see. I've started taking Celebrex and hope that will make a difference too.

Dutchie, running with the group was fun. At first I was just running alone as faster and slower runners took their own pace but they waited at a trail junction and we ran together for awhile. Then, the pizza and beer part was the best!

Happy, the SNER is a trail marathon along the American River, it runs part of the Western States 100 route. There's also a double marathon but I'm not there yet. That trail run was hard, I was running longer than my marathon PR.

"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

"To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

"The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

Perfesser: sounds like you had a lot of fun on your group run. Weeks like this, when I'm so unmotivated to go out for a run, I think a group would've helped me. Unfortunately, noone runs as early as I do. If I go, that is.

Happyfeat: I have a pretty bright headlight, I need to change the batteries though.

drPhibes: good to see you again. Thanks for the butt kick How's your running going?

I skipped all my runs this week. Twice, I was all dressed up in my running gear, shoes and all, and then didn't go out. How's that for no motivation.Did do all my planned strength training at 5h30 AM on Mon and Fri though.

It's Sat now and I promised myself that I will run when planned if it's only for 10 minutes (Tue, Wed, Thu, Sat, Sun). I have to, cause next Sunday is my 10-mile race, and four weeks after my half marathon. Do you think I'm sabotaging myself by not running?

ETA: Perfesser, you almost caught up with me

Dutchie I go running in the early morning, before my brain figures out what I'm up to.

Dutchie: Sounds like maybe a little burnout but your plan for a little bit everyday sounds good. Sometimes I go through a bunch of crap workouts and just when I'm feeling done usually I am rewarded with a really good sunrise or a big coffee smile from the cute guy at my local cafe. Sometimes its more about my brain than my legs... and obviously not about the mileage.

Happy: I'll think of you too!

Kelly: Good luck against the kiddies. I'll be running 2 miles to your 4 (hopefully)

Must get a massage soon - calves are getting knotty - after work deadline next friday.